Desire
by NoteBookAddict
Summary: Sakura, daughter of Duke and Duchess Haruno, fell in love high her coachman Naruto after returning from Paris. However, living in 1894 Victorican London will not make her secret love affair easy. Especially not with the arrival of Sasuke, a rich gentleman from the rising city of New York who seems to have taken a liking to Sakura. SaskuSaku or NaruSaku, which one will she choose?
1. The gentleman arrives

**Beta: Raven and Writing Desks**

A cold breeze drifted through the thin wooden walls of the barn. It made its way through the dusty air towards the sleeping couple and tickled their noses. Slowly, the female opened her eyes and took in her surroundings. There she was, in her favourite spot in the world. It was not, as most girls of her class would think, her ornate receiving room, nor was it her trimmed rose-bush garden, nor her soft goose feather bed. It was the small attic of the horse barn that sat at the side of her family's town house.

The five-story white-stone town house rose high into the capital's sky and looked over the royal Hyde Park. It was a mere twenty-minute walk from Buckingham Palace and stood in the centre of London's fashionable upper-class circle. It was, after all, the pride of the Haruno family and had been for decades past.

The Haruno's were near the top of society's totem pole, being loosely related to the royal family themselves. Duchess Haruno regularly entertained the wealthiest guests from England's finest bloodlines and even a few from the growing nation of America. She was a known beauty and was often seen in the company of Countess Yamanaka and Countess Hyuuga, two other fine society wives. However, none could say that the Duchess Haruno held more than half the beauty of her only daughter.

Lady Sakura Haruno had recently come into society that spring of 1894, a little late by some standard considering that she was already seventeen but the fact was widely accepted due to her year-long trip to Paris. In her time away, Lady Sakura had become almost fluent in the romantic language of French and learned many of the fine arts that were popular in the country. She had missed the coming-out of many of her friends, including her best friend Lady Ino Yamanaka, and even the arrival of new well-bread families from New York. However, none of this was what the young lady missed most. It was not the parties nor the boat races nor the walks in the pleasant park. All of these things she had found an equal for in Paris. The thing she had missed most was the smile of her family's coachman and secret crush, the orphan Naruto Uzumaki.

Relaxing, Sakura remembered the events last night that had led her to waking up in the bare arms of her blonde coachman. The pair had met secretly at unthinkable hours, after the rest of household fell asleep, since her arrival from Paris.

It had started innocently at first. The pair would sit up late by candle light, talking about adventures and dreams for the future. Sakura had often noted a hint of blush in his cheeks whenever she moved closer and felt assured by this. Then, one day, without warning, Naruto had leaned over Sakura, pinning her to a pile of straw and pressed his lips firmly against hers. They met up nearly every night after this, but last night was different. Last night, they went further than an innocent kiss.

"I love you." Naruto had said. The orange light of the flickering flame danced across his soft features, creating a glow to shine over him. The girl did not reply. She couldn't, for no words presented themselves on her lips.

Sakura did, however, move closer and kiss the boy like she had many times before.

Moving his rough hands to her arms, he had pushed her down on the blanket below. Sakura had moved her tongue in time with his and felt his hands roam over her body, sending ecstatic shivers down her spine. The hands had moved with purpose, finding their way to the hem of her night-gown and slipped under. A shock had shot through Sakura and she gasped with astonishment. Groaning delicately, she arched her back in pleasure as Naruto's fingers massaged her insides.

It did not take long after that until she had found herself staring at his naked form, and watching him stare back at hers. After a reassuring nod, Naruto had pressed his hips into Sakura's and ground them back and forth. It hurt at first, like a hot iron rod, but it had gotten better. Shortly after, Sakura had found herself moving with him and enjoying the closeness of his body.

Reluctantly, she pulled away from the sleeping Naruto and after replacing her nightgown, crept back into the house and up to her room. She vaguely remembered her mother saying something about a very important ball tonight and did not want to be found absent when her maid came to fit her dress.

...

"He should be here tonight!" cried the excited voice by Sakura's left ear, pulling her out of her day-dream.

"Who should?" she replied, only mildly interested. This gained a raised eyebrow from her blonde friend.

Sakura and her friend Ino were walking with arms linked around the side of the Nara's grand ballroom. It was a spectacular room, though not as brilliant as the many Haruno rooms, with polished marble floors and mint wallpaper lined with gold leaf. The Egyptian silk curtains covered the floor-to-ceiling windows allowing the room to be lit only by the shining glow of the cut glass lamps instead of the twinkling stars outside. As they strolled, the Indian red skirt of the pinkette's bow-covered gown churned with the soft violet and pearl-covered of the blonde's. Sakura couldn't help but think that if Ino were waring such a paler colour than her usual, she must have been trying to impress someone new and important.

"The new gentleman from New York! The _un-married_ gentleman" she explained with a wink.

_This must be the reason for her unexpected wardrobe choice_, Sakura pondered. She had always thought Ino would end up married to either Lord Choji Akimachi or Lord Shikamaru Nara because their three families were so close. Apparently, Ino disagreed. Or maybe this was just the uncontrollable need Ino possessed to flirt with anything that had ears.

The blonde continued to speak. "He's ever so handsome! I saw him enter the Richmond Hotel just this morning. And I've heard he's filthy rich. Something with a family tragedy that left him as the owner of several high functioning businesses and the soul heir to his family's wealth. He's quite the catch!"

It was true that the gossip Ino acquired was usually correct but Sakura also knew her to exaggerate on occasion. Before the two could continue their conversation, a tall figure stepped into the paths.

"Excuse me," the white haired, well-dressed form of Sir Kakashi Hatake said. He was significantly lower in rank than everyone else in the room but the higher nobility had accepted him into their circle due to his excellent work as a knight and that the Queen herself favoured him. "But may I have this dance with Lady Sakura?" The knight regularly asked Sakura to dance at balls so she accepted graciously and began to waltz around the room. The pair engaged in small talk in which Kakashi complemented the lady on her beautiful dress and curled hair.

After taking a spinning turn, Ino showed up in Sakura's vision. She pointed enthusiastically towards the entrance and when Sakura turned to follow her friend's indication, she gasped. Standing by the wide oak doors stood a tall, raven-haired man. His face was turned away to greet the nearby people who seemed to be gravitating towards him but when he turned in her direction, she saw just how much Ino had under-exaggerated.

That was a first.

**A/N: The situation of Sakura and Naruto was inspired by the Luxe series but this sorry will not be like that. Also, I don't know that much about British titles and nobility so please don't be mad if I got something wrong! (Dukes and Duchesses are above Earls and countesses which puts Sakura's family higher than the others mentioned so far). I hope you liked it!**


	2. Lost in onyx eyes

**Beta: Raven and Writing Desks**

"Lady Sakura?"

A distant voice echoed through the pinkette's mind.

"Lady Sakura?"

Tearing her eyes away from the enchanting man on the opposite side of the ballroom, Sakura looked up to see a concerned Kakashi looking down at her.

"Are you alright? You've gone quite pale," he observed.

"Oh yes," Sakura replied, feeling the colour flood back into her cheeks. "I'm just a little dizzy, maybe I should sit down for a bit."

Being the perfect gentleman, Sir Kakashi led her towards an unoccupied couch placed strategically by the far wall so that one could observe the dancing couples without the view of the entrance being blocked.

How convenient.

…

Sakura had watched the raven-haired man dance with numerous women. First there had been Lady Hinata, who had been ushered towards him by her advantageous mother. She'd blushed the whole way though and barely said a word to him before fainting on the spot when he'd moved his hand too low on her back. Sakura hoped that had been an accident of his.

Then, he had danced with Lady Tenten, up until her betrothal, Lord Neji, stole her away when she appeared to be having too much fun. There had also been Lady Temari, who'd spent more time exchanging wicked grins with Lord Shikamaru than time looking at her dance partner, and, of course, Sakura's best friend Lady Ino. There had been other women too, all blushing as their pastel coloured skirts swept around the man's dark navy trousers. However, Sakura couldn't help but notice that the raven-haired man returned none of their enthusiasm. He simply stared at the walls and ceiling whilst making small talk.

That was before he'd noticed Sakura. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but she could have sworn she'd seen a hint of interest in his eyes.

He was now talking to Countess Nara who, no doubt, must have been pointing out the different features of her magnificent ballroom. The Countess had no daughters so Sakura couldn't think what her apparent interest in the young man could be for. Perhaps her husband hoped to make a business deal with him.

Suddenly, she nodded towards the pinkette and whispered something into the dashing man's ear. Sakura felt a shiver run down her back as his dark onyx eyes locked on to hers. Within seconds, the pair had moved over to where Sakura sat.

"Countess Nara," she said, whilst standing up to give a polite curtsy, "What a lovely event tonight has been."

"Why thank you!" she replied with a proud smile. "Lady Sakura, have you met Mr. Uchiha yet?"

Sakura shook her head and replied that she hadn't.

"Oh what a shame! This is Mr. Sasuke Uchiha of New York City. He's come to London for one of his business branches." She turned to the man, "Mr. Uchiha, this is Lady Sakura Haruno, the only daughter of Duke and Duchess Haruno."

Silence fell on the three after Mister Uchiha and Sakura exchanges greetings.

"Lady Sakura," Mister Uchiha said when the tension had grown too high. "Would you like to dance?" He said, offering his hand.

Sakura took it and was glad that neither of her parents were there to see her cheeks turn the same shade as her dress. Her father was away to visit another duke in York and would not be back for another week. Her mother had said that she'd felt too sick to go to the ball that night, but had assured Sakura that she would be fine by morning.

As the pair waltzed to the sound of Tchaikovsky, Sakura grew ever conscious of Mr. Sasuke's hand on her back and the closeness of his chest to hers. She also felt him grow more and more tired of her as the dance went on.

"Mr. Uchiha," she finally said, "do you like it here in London so far?"

"Hn… the weather is not the best," he managed to say, all the time looking over Sakura's head. After a few more moments he spoke again, in his bored voice, which gave Sakura the feeling that he couldn't wait for the song to end. "I couldn't imagine living in the same city for the rest of my life. Especially not in the cold rain."

"Oh I know what you mean," she responded, happy for the new conversation, "I want to travel the world. Maybe go to India or China to climb a mountain or swim in the warm ocean or…" the pinkette trailed off when she realised that her partner was staring at her in shock.

This was the first real emotion she'd seen him wear all night.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Sasuke. I spoke too much." She said, hoping her mistake would not cost too much. Anyway, it didn't matter if this man liked her or not, nothing would ever come of it.

Sakura found herself wishing that the man holding her in a suit had blonde hair instead of dark blue. She wished he had big, round, blue eyes and that he would lean close to her ear and whisper something to make her laugh.

"It's alright. Please, call me Sasuke."

The kind words pulled Sakura out of her daydream and bought her eyes up to Sasuke's. All thoughts of Naruto fled her and she found herself lost in a world of ravens and American accents.

How peculiar this new feeling was. It was like nothing the pinkette had ever felt before.

…

Ino sat on the corner of Sakura's ruby-red bed sheets. This would not be an acceptable event for most people but Sakura had known the blonde for as long as she remembered and the two of them were like sisters.

Sakura sat up straighter in her night gown and pulled her pink braid over her shoulder. Perhaps she'd misheard her friend's news. It was true that she'd drunk a little too much champagne after her dance with Sasuke and had even started seeing things.

She had seen two wine glasses, one with a lipstick stain, in the main receiving room but this could not have really happened because her mother was sick and so incapable of seeing anyone in her fathers absence. Sakura had also seen Naruto's head disappear from behind her bedroom door but surely he would not risk coming to her room, even if it had been late at night.

However, this time she'd not missed anything, Ino said repeated exactly what she'd said before.

"Shikamaru and I are engaged! He asked me last night after you and mostly everyone else left."

The news confused Sakura. She'd been sure that Ino and Lord Shikamaru had always been just friends without a single romantic spark between them.

"Is this a good thing?" she asked, just to be sure.

Ino gave her a serious look. "I wasn't sure at first. But this is surely going to be good for both of out families. And Shika is a wonderful man; I get on very well with him. Not to mention he's very popular with the other society women _and_ the press. So yes, this is a good thing."

"Well then," Sakura grinned, "I'm so happy for you!"

"As my maid of honour should be!"

The two girls collapsed into each other's arms and launched in excitement over flower arrangements and gown fabrics. However, Sakura couldn't shake an uneasy feeling. Not over Ino, but over the idea of her own future marriage. She'd been certain for quite some time that there was only one man good enough for her. But now, with the memory of onyx eyes, she was not so sure.

**A/N: I hope you like this new chapter! I'm really getting into the story so watch out for lots of drama, romance, and scandals to come ;)**


	3. A second confession

Sakura held up the hem of her rose night-gown as she climbed down the abandoned staircase at the back of the town house. It had used to be the servants staircase but, with the Haruno's family position and wealth, even the workers had had their quarters upgraded and expanded. Now, it made the perfect secret route for Sakura to take to the coach house.

When she reached the barn, the pinkette slowly pushed the doors open with her pearl-smooth hand and slipped inside.

"Naruto?" She called out softly.

A shuffling noice came from the other side of the barn, where the blonde normally slept.

"Sakura. You finally came."

The voice was quiet but Sakura could still hear the desperation it held. Ino had taken up so much of her time that the pinkette had not managed to see Naruto for three days.

As she moved closer to she shadows, a broad hand reached out to her. Sakura grasped it, letting her fingers brush the familiar texture of his rough skin.

Without any warning, the hand pulled Sakura into the darkest of shadows. She flew through the air, unable to stop herself, and just as she thought she might never find ground again, Sakura landed against a warm chest. Strong arms embraced her, holding her tightly but not in a way to suffocate her, as a gust of warm breath fluttered over her neck.

It had always been this way. Naruto was a strong man but he always treated the pinkette like a rare china doll.

After a moment, Sakura realised just how heavily her companion was breathing.

"Naruto," she murmured, "what's wrong?"

"Nothing." He replied. "Nothing now that you're here."

The mix of relief and anxiety in his voice reminded the young lady of the face she had hallucinated peering around her door on the night of the party.

…

The melting candles that lined the small sleeping space at the back of the barn were now casting their warm glow over the room. Sakura lay back on the worn down mattress and pulled Naruto's coarse blanket over her shoulders. It was not the comfiest thing in the world but as Sakura watched the blond rummage through his draws, she decided that she could live with it.

"Found it!" Naruto exclaimed.

Sakura felt a grin spread over her face as he held up a small bottle of gin. She knew that it couldn't be anything special but Naruto seemed so pleased with himself that it didn't matter. It was almost as if his youthful happiness had diffused through the room and engulfed her.

"To Lady Ino and Lord Shikamaru!" he cheered as he poured the brown liquid into two cups and held one high.

The Pinkette's smile fell from her face.

"I hope they'll be happy." She muttered.

Ino had always been there for Sakura. She'd been there when Sakura felt lonely or sad and had always found a way to bring joy back into life. Sakura wanted to be excited for her friend, she wanted to watch her friend smile grow more each day but she couldn't shake an uneasy feeling. Perhaps it was the lack of love she saw in the engaged couple. Not family love, she saw that in them each day, but romantic love. The love she and Naruto shared. Or at least, seemed to share.

Sakura took a sip of the gin. A fiery sensation ran down her throat, causing her to grimace.

"Hey, S-Sakura," Naruto stuttered, "what do you think of being married?"

Shocked by the sudden change of atmosphere, the young lady look up to meet the blonde's eyes before letting her gaze fall to the blanket.

"Well um…"

"Sakura." Came a small whisper.

"I've never really thought so seriously…"

"Sakura."

"I think that the couple should be completely…"

"Sakura."

"It's just that-"

"Sakura, stop." The whisper finally commanded. "You don't need to say anything. It's ok."

Sakura looked up to Naruto again.

"I love you." He said.

…

Sakura didn't know what had made her feel so queazy. Naruto had confessed to her before but this time she'd felt more distant than the last.

Quickly, the Pinkette stood up and started pacing around her four-poster bed. She didn't know what to feel or how to act. The knowledge that she felt strongly for Naruto was imprinted into her mind and she'd often imagined herself becoming his wife, but there was something else nothing her. Something that stopped her from being able to fully understand her feelings. Something with raven hair…

_How do you know when you are in love?_

The thought made Sakura stop still in her tracks.

Love. Could it be that she already felt this?

Sakura had left the barn shortly after the blonde's unannounced confession. He'd held her tight and kissed her lips. It had felt right but at the same time, it hadn't.

"Do I love him?" She wondered to herself.

Resuming her fast pace, Sakura begin to further think out loud.

"I could love him. He makes me feel happy. That's what love is, isn't it? Feeling at ease and comfortable. Wanting to hold him. Wanting to be held by him. That must be love, right?"

Folding her left arm over her chest and pinching her lower lip with her other, she stood still and thought hard, trying to process every thought.

"That's it!" She finally exclaimed, slapping the side of her fist into the other palm, "I love him!"

"Love who?" came an amused voice from beside her open window.

Shrieking, Sakura span around. Before she could identify the owner of the voice, the dark figure had moved across the room to her in one step and closed his hand over her mouth.

"Hush." He whispered.

With her heart thumping faster than the weeks of a steam train, the pinkette looked up. She did not recognise him at first, for the dark night already concealed most of his dark form. However, after staring a few more moments, Sakura managed to pick out the loose locks of midnight blue hair and the perfectly sculpted cheekbones that belonged to Mister Uchiha. No, to Sasuke.

"What are you doing here?" she asked when the man finally moved his hand.

"The night of the ball," Sasuke said, taking a long look over Sakura. "I forgot something."

At this moment, the young lady became painfully aware that she was wearing nothing more than her thin night-gown. And it was a cold night.

Before Sakura could question Sasuke or even move her arms to cover herself, he swooped downward and grasped Sakura. The kiss was long and electric, but ended all too soon. After one last look from Sasuke, he turned and climbed back out of the window, leaving Sakura alone and confused.

_I love him?_

**A/N: First, I'd like to apologise. The person I would have asked to beta read this is on holiday so there might be some typos or continuity errors.  
This chapter was interesting for me to write, as I wanted to show the growing relationships of both pairings. Sakura will choose one man in the end but it might not be the one you think ;) I hope you enjoyed it!  
Also, I might not upload for a few weeks as I have exams next month but I will try my best.**

**Ah so some people now think that Sakura will end up with Sasuke because of my comment above but I would just like to clarify that that may or may not be the case. I actually have two alternative endings planned and do not know which one I will use yet. I am leaning towards one of them but I won't say which one. Anyhow, you can route for Sasuke or Naruto, either man has an equal (well, more or less equal) chance of being chosen at this point. The ending could be surprising for you, you will have to read to find out :D**


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